Method of making soap cake having desired insignia



July 8 1947 1.. A. BLOCK METHOD OF MAKING SOAP CAKE HAVING A DESIREDINSIGNIA 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 25 1943 INVENTOR A] IORNE LssL/E,4; 5L acK. BY v 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 M j 6 J 0 Z 4 2 7 3 a v INVENTORLi's/.1: ,4. BL oc/r.

L. A. BLOCK I Filed Sept. 25, 1943 BY W.

- ATTORNEY z/Hea Y O V 4. I I l flv V I3- L40 July 8, 1947.

' METHOD OF MAKING SOAP CAKE HAVING A DESIRED INSIGNIA July 1947. L. A.BLOCK METHOD OF MAKING SOAP CAKE HAVING A DESIRED INSIGNIA Filed Sept.25, 1943 6 Sheets$heet .3

Les/mflg gck A T'I'ORNE Y L. A. BLOCK 2,423,435

METHOD OF MAKING SOAP CAKE HAVING A DESIRED INSIGNIA Filed Sept. 25,1943 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 A TTORNE Y y 1947- L. A. BLOCK 2,423,435

METHOD OF MAKING SOAP OAK) HAVING A DESIRED INSIGNIA Filed Sept. 25,1943 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 Fig/7 D F/ g/a July 8, 1947. A. BLOCK METHOD OFMAKING SOAP CAKE HAVING A,DESIRED INSIGNIA Filed Sept. 25, 1945 6Sheets-Sheet 6 Les/fa ,4. 15/0 c/ INVENTOR A TTORNE Y Patented July 8,1947 IVIETHOD OF MAKING SOAP CAKE HAVING DESIRED INSIGNIA Leslie A.Block, Rochester, N. Y.; Wilton A. Block administrator of said LeslieA.Block, deceased Application September 25, 1943, Serial No. 503,792

(ill. 252-96) 13 Claims. 1

The present invention is a continuation-inpart of my co-pendingapplication Serial No. 280,366, filed June 21, 1939, and relatesparticularly to a method of making a soap cake having a desiredinsignia.

While it is well-known that soap cakes having a desired insignia may bemade by providing an aperture or recess in a soap cake and introducing adistinctively colored insert thereinto, such known methods and apparatusare not satisfactory because exact and precise registry is not obtainedbetween the insert and the soap cake.

The primary object of the present invention is the provision of a methodof making a soap cake having a desired insignia which is preciselycomplementary to said soap cake.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a method forintroducing a distinctive insert into a soap cake and simultaneouslyforming and/or reforming the aperture or recess in the soap cake bymeans of the distinctive insert itself.

A. further object of the invention is a method or providing adistinctive soap material with the grain therein in a predeterminedplane and forming from such distinctive soap material an insert which isintroduced into the soap cake with the grain of said insertsubstantially parallel to the display surface of said soap cake.

Still another object of the invention is a method. of forming anaperture in a soap cake with a core having the contour of a desiredinsignia and forming a distinctive insert for introduction into aperturein a forming die molded around the core used to make said aperture.

Other and further objects of the invention will be apparent or suggestedto those skilled in the art by the description which follows.

The aforementioned and other objects of the invention are accomplishedby a method for introducing a distinctive insert into a soap cake andsimultaneously forming or reshaping an aperture in the soap cake byinsertion of said distinctive insert so that the contour of the aperture and insert correspond precisely throughout. The technique of theinvention is further enhanced by forming the distinctive insert of asoap material which is harder and drier than the soap cake, bypreviously providing an aperture in the soap cake which aperture is moreless re-shaped by the-insert itself, by forming the insert in a diemolded around the core for making said aperture, by arranging the grainof the soap material for the distinctive insert in a predeterminedplane, either by pre-arrangement or by compression, and formingtherefrom a insert which is introduced into the soap cake with itsgrainparallel to a display surface of the soap cake, and/or by introducingthe freshly formed insert immediately into the soap cake to shape theaperture therein whereby the adjacent surfaces of the insert andaperture contact throughout and tightly adhere to each other.

The insertion and cementation of the distinctive inserts maybe'facilitated or improved by lubricating or wetting the walls of theaperture the soap cake prior to or during the introduction of thedistinctively colored insert into said soap cake. Also the fixation ofthe distinctively colored insert and the appearance of the compositesoap cake may be further improved by subjecting said composite cake to acompressing and finishing operation in a cake finishing press of knowndesign.

As used herein the term insignia shall mean and include one or moresymbols, monograms, figures, letters, characters, trade-marks, designs,or the like; the term distinctive as usedto describe the insert shallmean and refer to a differ-- ent color or different shade of the samecolor for the insignia with respect to the color of the soap cake; andthe words aperture, recess, hole, etc, are applied interchangeably tothe openings in the soap cake. The features of the invention are equallyadvantageous whether, as shown, the distinctive inserts extend partiallyor entirely through the soap cake.

Since the present invention is primarily directed to formation of a soapcake having a desired insignia, it is not necessary to describe thepreparation and manufacture of the soap material itself. The on-1yrequirement is that the soap material shall bein a state ready andsuitable for molding and may be in pulverized or powdered form. Forinstance, soap material as it comes from the plodder may be used as astarting material especially for the cake body while the soap materialfor forming the insignia may be dyed to a color and/or shade differentfrom the soap cake by the addition or admixture of suitable dyes orpigments and is preferably dried or dehydrated in a known manner to bedrier and harder than the soap material of the cake body.

Reference is hereby made to the accompanying drawings wherein similarreference characters designate similar elements and wherein:

Fig. i is a plan view of a mold for forming the apertured cakes and alsothe insignia forming die.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of an end plate for the molding press.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the mold taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1and illustrating the manner of casting an end plate or forming die.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section of the mold taken on the line 44 of Fig. 1and showing the metal and leather end members therefor.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the die plate for forming the distinctivelycolored inserts.

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of a forming means for the distinctivelycolored inserts with a partial section through the soap cake and thereceptacle therefor.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary transverse section through an automatic machinefor performing the invention.

Fig. 8 is a transverse section to enlarged scale of the soap cakerecessing station of said machine.

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the recessed soap cake with a sectioncut away through the insignia.

Fig. 10 is a bottom view of a cover member for the mold member of saidmachine.

Fig. 11 is a side elevation of a distinctive insert forming andinjecting station at the second step of its cycle.

Fig. 12 is side elevation of said forming and injecting station at thethird step of the cycle.

Fig. 13 is a fragmentary vertical longitudinal section of said insertforming and injecting station showing the relative positions of thepiston and plunger members during said second and third steps of thecycle.

Fig. 14 is a vertical transverse section of said insert forming andinjecting station at the fourth step of the cycle.

Fig. 15 is a fragmentary vertical transverse section of said insertforming and injecting station showing the relative positions of thepiston and plunger members during the fourth step of the cycle.

Fig. 16 is a horizontal section through the actuating mechanism for theinsert forming and injection means on the line 16-46 of Fig. 11.

Fig. 17 is a side elevation of a distinctive insert cutting andinjecting station at the second step of its cycle.

Fig. 18 is a fragmentary vertical'longitudinal section of said insertcutting and injecting station during said second step of the cycle.

Fig. 19 is a vertical transverse section of said insert cutting andinjecting station during the third step of its cycle.

Fig. 20 is a fragmentary vertical transverse section of said insertcutting and injecting station during the fourth and during the finalcompression steps of the cycle.

Fig. 21 is a side elevation of the automatic machine for practising myinvention showing the actuating mechanism for the cake perforating andinsert injecting stations thereof.

Fig. 22 is an inverted perspective View of the cutting and plungermembers of the insert cutting and injecting station.

Although provision of recesses or apertures in the soap cake prior tothe insertion of the distinctive inserts is shown herein and ispreferred, it must be understood that the invention in its broadestaspects contemplates displacement of the soap material of the soap caketo receive the distinctive inserts solely by the action of the insertsthemselves. However, the soap cakes may be provided with aperturesextending completely through the cake or may be provided with recessesextending only part way through the soap cake. Such apertures orrecesses may also be provided either when the soap cake is formed or maybe provided by a punching operation later to be described.

Provision of the apertures simultaneously with the formation of the soapcake may be accomplished in a mold or press, an illustrative form ofwhich is shown in Figs. 1-4 inclusive. Such a mold may comprise a baseplate l5 and a mold form is providing a mold cavity I! and having aflange i3 which is detachably secured to base plate E5 as by screws 19.The mold cavity I! may have any desired form but is preferablyrectangular with rounded corners and has .its length and width in theratio of 3:2.

One or more cores 20 are attached to or imbedded in said base plate l5.Each core 25} has a cross-section corresponding in form and of the samesize as the desired insignia. As shown and for forming soap cakes saidcores 2% have parallel sides.

The mold cavity ll of the cored cake press is enclosed by top and bottommembers which prevent the leakage of soap material being molded whensaid members are pressed toward each other. The bottom member has thesame form as the cross-section of cavity H and may comprise a metalbottom plate 23' provided with openings 22, see Fig. 2, complementary tothe cores 2G, and a covering layer of leather 23 also provided withopenings complementary to said cores 26. The top member is similarlyformed and may comprise a metal top plate 24 and a subjacent layer ofleather 25 both of which are also provided with openings complementaryto the outlines of the cores 20.

The openings such as 22 in the plates 2| and 2d may be formed to fitprecisely over the cores in any desired manner but one convenient andaccurate manner of forming said openings will now be described withrespect to plate 2!. Plate 2i may be made of sheet metal such as brassand is provided with a large opening 26 which fits over the cores 28with considerable clearance. A layer of refractory material 2 such asasbestos, is placed in mold cavity I! and is packed around the cores253. The asbestos layer 27 is arranged to support the plate 2!preferably with the top surface thereof flush with the top surfaces ofthe cores 2%), see Fig. 3. A metal of low melting point, such as typemetal, is then flowed in molten condition into the opening 25 and mayoverflow slightly or enough to cover the ends of cores 29. If necessarypressure may be applied to the surface of the molten type metal so as toforce said type metal to conform accurately to the outlines of cores 2eand said core 29 may be coated with lamp black or similar material toprevent the body of cast metal 28 from sticking to the surfaces of cores2%. The plate 2! is then removed f1 ml the mold form if: and the excessmetal is oved or ground from one or both sides of pia 2i to leaveaccurately and clearly defined pcnings in the cast metal portion 28.

The soap cake with apertures like the insignia extending therethroughmay be formed by introducing a mass of pulverized or powdered moldablematerial, or of soap as obtained from the plodder, into the mold cavityI! over the bottom leather layer 23 and around the cores 20, see Fig. 4.o The soap cake 29 is then compressed to conform to the outlines of themold cavity I! and of the cores 2%] by exerting in any suitable mannerupon the top plate 24 a pressure which is represented by the arrows P.As a result, a homogeneous cake 29 is formed of soap and said cake 29 issimultaneously provided with one or more aperturescorresponding inoutline to the insignia desired. The formed cake 29 is then removed frommold cavity ll in any convenient manner such as by means of ejectingpins 38 which may move the bottom plate 2|, leather layer 23 and cake 29with respect to cores 20 and mold cavity ll so that the cake 29 may beextracted.

The next step in making of the composite soap cake is the separatemolding of distinctively colored soap inserts. Such formation of thedistinctivel colored inserts may be accomplished in any suitable mannerbut is preferably effected by extrusion or by forcing the distinctivelycolored soap through a die.

In order to save considerable time and expense and for an inherentadvantage explained hereinafter, the extrusion die is preferably made ina manner quite similar to that in which plates 2! and 24 were formed andnow to be described. The mold form I6 is removed from the base plate 15after unscrewing the screws ill, see Fig. 3. A layer of asbestos isplaced over base plate l5 and around cores 2E1. A die plate 3| isprovided with a diverging opening 32 and is placed over said asbestoslayer on base plate 15 with the larger or divergent side of said opening32 down. The opening 32 is large enough to clear the cores in, which asbefore may be coated with lamp black or the like, a metal of low meltingpoint is flowed in molten condition into said opening 32 and may beplaced under pressure as by pressing upon the surface of the moltenmetal. The cast metal portion 33 is consequently provided with one ormore openings 34 which correspond exactly with the outlines of cores2!).

A pressure means may comprise a cylinder 35 having a flange 35 andincluding a piston 31 and piston rod 38. The die plate 3| is detachablyfastened to flange 3E5 by a plurality of bolts 39 and with the larger ordivergent side of opening 32 facing the pressure means or piston 31. Thecylinder 35 is filled with a quantity of distinctively colored erodiblemoldable material and a pressure is exerted on piston rod 38 whereuponone or more distinctively formed bodies 34 are forced through theopenings 35 of die plate 3!. The divergence of opening 32 insures thatthe cast metal portion 33 will not be dislodged from die plate 3! by thepressure of the soap being extruded. This feature is especiallyadvantageous when, according to a preferred distinctively colored bodiesare extruded from a dehydrated or drier soap which may be heavily dyedor pigmented.

The distinctively formed and colored bodies 34 are then inserted intothe cored apertures of the molded cake 29. Such step may be manuallyperformed but is preferably combined with the extrusion procedure sothat said distinctively formed and colored bodies 34 are extrudeddirectly into said apertures of cake 29. To this end a cake receptacletil having an end wall provided with apertures 22" may be removablymounted adjacent the die plate M, or may be detachably supported bydowel pins M from said die plate 3!. It is also very convenient for theoperator merely to hold the cake 29 in front of the die plate 3| duringthe extrusion of the distinctively colored bodies 34' into said cake 29.

An inherent result of forming the aperture in the soap cake in themanner described and of procedure, the

pressing the distinctive insert through a die formed around the coreused to form such aperture is that the insert is somewhat larger thanthe aperture in the soap cake so that the introduction of the insertreforms or reshapes the aperture. This effect may be on account of acertain resiliency of the soap material in the cake after removal of thecore and/or may be on account of some expanding of the insert afterpassage through the forming die. In any event such reshaping of the cakeaperture by the distinctive insert itself has certain importantadvantages, to wit: perfect and precise registry of the distinctiveinsert with the soap cake is assured, the adjacent surfaces of the soapcakes and insert are in contact throughout, and the walls of thereshaped cake aperture are more adhesive or tackier than a soap surfacethat has been exposed to air for any appreciable time and, of course,this effect is increased when the newly formed distinctive insert isimmediately introduced and/or extruded directly into the soap cake.

The insertion of the distinctively colored bodies 35 into the aperturesof cake 29 is considerably facilitated by lubricating the walls of theapertures in said cake 29. As in the case of a soap cake 29 anddistinctively colored inserts of soap, the walls of the apertures may belubricated merely by wetting with water by immersion or with a wetbrush. Also such lubrication and particularly the wettin with water ofthe walls of said apertures in a cake of soap facilitates reshaping ofthe cake apertures by the inserts and/ or considerably improves thefixation by cementation or adhesion of the soap inserts within the soapcake 29.

The rates of extrusion of the distinctively c01- ored inserts B lthrough the apertures 3d of die plate 3i may vary according to theoutline and area of each aperture 35 or according to the outline andarea of adjacent apertures t l. Because of such differences in theextrusion rates of the inserts 3d, the leading ends of the variousinserts will not simultaneously come through the cake 29. For thisreason receptacle is provided with apertures 22'.

After the apertures in the cake 29 are filled,

the extruded distinctively colored bodies as may be cut off by asevering means. Such severing means may be a separate wire or knife ormay be a knife having a handle 43 and pivoted to the die plate 3| by astud M.

The method and apparatus previously described embody several fundamentalprinciples which are well adapted to incorporation in an automaticmachine about to be described. In addition, certain improvements in'themethod of the invention will be disclosed in connection with suchautomatic machine, although it will be apparent that such improvementsmay also be used in a semi-automatic or manually operated machine.

The automatic machine for performing the method of the inventioncomprises a frame including side walls '53, see Fig. 21, and a carrierfor a plurality of mold members which are moved to various stations suchas a loading station, a cake perforating station, and an insert formingcutting and injecting station. Such a carrier may comprise a pair ofdisks 55, see Figs. '1 and 21, mounted in spaced relation on and forrotation about fixed shaft as which is mounted betw en the side wells'53 of the frame of the machine. A cam member ii? is fixedly mountedbetween said disks 45, includes a collar 8 attached to said fixed shaft43. and includes a rise 49 for a purpose to be mentioned later.

Each of the mold members is mounted between said disks 6-5 and each moldmember comprises a hollow frame 53 and a bottom member I Said hollowframe 55 provides a mold cavity 52, has end walls 53 which are fastenedto said disks G5 and has side walls 54. The bottom member 5| fits intosaid frame 56 to close one side of said mold cavity 52 and has a stem 55movable within a block member 55 mounted between said disks A5. Saidbottom members 5I are normally held in any suitable manner with the endsof stems 55 bearing against the periphery of cam member 41. An indexingmechanism for the carrier may comprise a Geneva gear is mounted on oneof said disks 45 and a driving member including a disk I5 carrying a pinI5 for engaging the radial slots of said Geneva gear M to move the sameintermittently and a sector III on disk I5 engages the periphery of gearI to hold the same stationary between rotations thereof.

The loading station may comprise a conveyor 57 which brings the soapcakes 29 into position opposite the cavity 52 in the mold member at theloading station and a loading plunger 58 is reciprocated within asupport 58 to push the successive soap cakes 29 into said cavity 52 ofthe mold member. whereupon the disks 45 are rotated to bring the moldmember andsoap cake therein to a perforating station.

The provision of a perforating step or station for the soap cake 29 isoptional because the apertures or recesses 55 may be provided in saidsoap cake 29 prior to its being placed on the conveyor 57 of the loadingstation or because such apertures or recesses are not necessary when thedistinctive inserts themselves perforate the soap cake at the insertforming or cutting and injecting station in the manner suggested herein.

Such a perforating station, if provided, may comprise a cover member I59and a perforating member Said cover member 60 has a cake contactingportion 52 and a pair of dowels 63. The perforating member includes aplunger 6I having the contour of the desired insignia and mounted upon aplate 64.

The actuating means for said cover and perforating members includes aframe head I8, a pair of actuating rods I9 extending through said headIt; and attached to the cover member 60, and an actuating rod 89 alsoextending through head 58 but attached to the plunger plate 6 2. Coilsprings 85 encircle rods I9 and, a coil spring 82 encircles rod 83, andthe tension in said springs SI and 82 may be adjusted respectively bynut members 8I' and 82' to cause the sequence of movements about to bedescribed. Cheek plates II 8, see Fig. 21, are attached to each side ofthe frame head I8 by bolts H9 and slidably engage the sides of openingsIZI! in the side walls I3. A connecting rod I2I is pivotally connectedat one end to a check plate H8 and at its other end to a bell crank I22which is pivoted upon side wall 73 and which is oscillated by a secondconnecting rod I23 also connected to bell crank I22 and eccentricallypivoted to a driving disk I24.

During each cycle of the machine said actuating means moves the head I8toward and away from the carrier for the mold members. Movement of thehead I8 toward a mold member moves the actuating rods 79 throughcompression of springs 8I to project the cake contacting portion 62 anddowels E3 of the cover member 60 into the mold cavity 52 and recesses 63respectively. At

the same time, the plunger 6| is moved toward the soap cake 29 andcontinued movement of head I8 through spring 82 and actuating rod movesplate 64 to project perforating plunger 6| into the soapcake 29, PlungerBI is moved into the soap cake 29 to any desired depth, referably thatindicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 8, or somewhat more than half waythrough the soap cake 29. Such depth of penetration of plunger 6| beingdetermined by the eccentricity of the connection of rod I23 to disk I24and/or by the radii of the arms of the bell crank I 22,

Return of the frame head I8 to the position shown in Figs. 7 and 21retracts said plunger 6| and cover member 66 from the mold member andthe soap cake therein is provided with one or more apertures 65 in theshape of the desired insignia.

The insert forming and injecting station is also slidably mounted withinopenings I28 in the side walls I3 of the machine frame. Cheek blocks I25are fastened to opposite sides of a frame head 72 by means of bolts I26and dowel pins I'll, see Fig. 16. A support member 67 is fastened atopposite ends to side walls I3 by bolts 63. Said insert forming andinjecting station comprises a cover member 59, a plunger member I0, apiston member II, and an actuating means for operating said members in acycle composed of five steps. Said actuating means includes a frame headI2 which is reciprocated radially of the mold member carrying the soapcake 29 and a plurality of rods extend through said frame head I2 andbeyond the support member 57.

The cover member 69 comprises a block 83 having a projection 84 adaptedto fit into the hollow frame 50 and having a concave soap cake engagingsurface 85. Said block 83 is provided with an insert soap cavity 86 andwith a guideway 8! for conducting a strip 88 of a distinctively coloredsoap over said cavity I35. One or more apertures 89 having the shape orcontour of the insignia to be imbedded in the soap cake, are provided insaid projection 84 and extend from the bottom of cavity to the soapengaging surface 85 of the cover member 69. A slideway 90 is provided inthe bottom of block 83 for a slide SI which extends beyond one end ofsaid block 83 and which is there provided with a pair of slots 92. Theother end of slide 9| carries a pair of pins 93 which extend intorecesses 94 in block 83. Springs 95 in said recesses 94 have one endconnected to said pins 93 and the other ends connected to a pair of pins95 within recesses 94 to hold the slide SI normally in position againstone of dowels 83 and with an opening 91 in said slide 9! opposite theapertures 89 in said projection 84. Slide BI is also provided with anelongated slot 9| for permitting movement of slide 9| with respect tothe other dowel 83'.

A pair of actuating rods 98 are attached to diagonally opposite cornersof the block 83 of the cover member 69 and each extends upwardly throughthe frame head I2 and through and beyond the support member 3?. A pairof coil springs 93 encircle said actuating rods 98 above said supportmember 67 and a pair of nuts I60 are threaded onto the upper ends ofsaid rods 98. Another pair of nut members 93' are threaded onto rods 98to limit the upward movement thereof under the action of springs 99. Asecond pair of coil springs IQI encircle rods 98 between the ends of theframe'head I2 and a nut I02 is threaded on each'rod 98 for adjusting thetension greats-s in said springs IIlI between the bottom of frame headI2 and-said nuts I02.

The piston member II comprises a plate I63 and a piston I94 adapted tofit into the cavity 86 in said block 83. Said piston I04 is attached toor is integral with plate I03 and extends downwardly therefrom. Also thepiston IE4 is provided with one or more apertures having the shape andcontour of the desired insignia. The .plate I B3 is provided at one pairof diagonally opposite corners with openings through which the actuatingrods 98 slidably eXtend and a second pair of actuating rods I95 areattached to the other pair of diagonally opposite corners of plate I03and such rods 7 I65 extend upwardly through the frame head 72. A coilspring I06 encircles each of said rods Hi5 between the top ofsaid framehead I2 and a nut IIiI is threaded onto each of rods I95. A nut memberIi'IiIv is also threaded onto each of rods I05 between the ends of framehead I2 and each is adapted to abut the bottom end thereof.

The plunger member It comprises a plate I09 and one or more plungers I Iwhich have the same shape and contour as the desired insignia and whichfit into the apertures in piston I64 and are adapted to fit into theapertures 89 in the projection 8d of the cover member 69. Said plungersIit are attached to'or are integral with plate its and extend downwardlytherefrom. Said plate IE9 is provided near its corners'with holesthrough which extend the actuating rods 98 and H55 of the covermember-69 and of the piston member II, respectively. An actuating rodIII is attached at its lower end to thecenter of plate I29 and extendsupwardly through the frame head I2. A coil spring II2 encircles said rodIII between a nut I I3 threaded thereon and the upper portion of framehead I2. An adjusting nut i It is also threaded onto rod III and isadapted to abut against the lower portion of frame head I2. A pair ofabutments I99 are adjustably attached or threaded into plate I09 andextend downwardly therefrom for a purpose to be described.

The slide 9i may-be automatically operated in any suitable manner as bya pair of cam members IE mounted upon the plate I09, extendingdownwardly through the slots 92in slide 9|, and each having-a rise H6 atthe lower end thereof.

:The frame head 12 of the insert forming and injecting station isslidably mounted in the frame of the machine and is reciprocated intimed relation to the indexing means for the mold carrier. A pair offlanged cheek blocks I25 are fastened to opposite sides'of head I2 bymeans of bolts I25 and dowel pins I21, see Fig. 16. Said blocks I25engage and slide within rectangular openings I28 which are provided inside walls I3 of the machine frame. Pins I29 extend laterally from eachblock I25 and are each journaled in one end of a connecting rod I30having its other end pivotally connected to a bell crank I3I which isrotatably mounted in common with bell crank I22 on a shaft I32 extendingbetween the side walls It, see Fig. 21. A second connecting rod I33 hasone end connected tobell crank I3I and has its other end eccentricallypivoted to the driving disk I24. Said driving disk I24 is mounted upon ashaft I34 journaled in side walls I3 and driven in any suitable mannerby a prime mover or motor, not shown.

-- insignia. of different volume.

of the insert soap within the cavity 86 also ar- '10 frame head I2 arereciprocated through a stroke determined by the eccentricity of theconnection of connecting rod I33 to disk I2 5, and/or by the radii ofthe arms of bell crank I3I to which the connecting rods I39 and I33 areconnected.

The actuating means for the insert form; and injecting station and/orfor c forating station are operated in timed relatio to the indexingmeans for the mold carrier. For this purpose a sprocket I35 on shaft I34is encircled by a chain I36 which also encircles a sprocket ISI attachedto the driving disk It for the Geneva gear 14'. As a result, the drivingpin I6 moves said Geneva gear I4 when the cheek plates H8 and cheekblocks I25 and the associated frame heads I8 and I2 are at the uppermostends of openings I20 and I28 and when the mold and/or soap cake engagingmembers of said stations are retracted and spaced from the mold membersof the intermittently rotated carrier.

The operation of the insert forming and injecting station shown in Figs.7 and 11-16 will not be described.

At the beginning of the cycle, the actuating means for and members ofthe insert forming and injecting station are in the positions shown inFig. '7, the frame head I2 of said actuating means is in its uppermostposition, the cover member 69 is spaced from the mold frame 58, pistonmember II is spaced from the bottom of guideway 81 sufficiently forintroduction of the strip 88 of insert soap therebetween, plunger memberit has the lower face or faces of the plunger I I0 approximately flushwith the bottom of piston IM, and the rises H6 on cam members II5 are inengagement with the outer ends of slots 92 to hold slide .iI outwardlyagainst the action of spring 95 so that said slide 9! covers theapertures 89 in projection 84 of the cover member 69. At this time thecoil springs 95 and IIJI are under tension and hold the cover member 69away from the mold member and nut members 98 abut against support memberti.

The first step of the method or insert forming cycle of the machine isillustrated in Fig. 11 and takes place during the first part of thedownward movement of frame head 12 of th actuating means. During suchmovement of frame head I2 the compression on springs I06 and H2 isincreased to exert a thrust on actuating rods I05 and III, to moveplates I03 and I09 toward the block 83, and to move piston I65 andplunger or plungers III] through the strip 83 of insert soap into thecavity 85 in block 83. The volume in the strip 83 sheared off andpressed into cavity 86 is approximately equal to the volume of theinsignia and the thickness of strip 88 and/or the amount of the strip 88fed into said cavity 86 may be varied to maintain the relationship forThe compression rangesororients the grain of the soap for the "insertsso that such grain will be perpendicular to the pressure exerted by thepiston and plunger members. When starting up the machine, it willobviously be necessary to fill cavity 86 with [insert soap or severalsections of strip 88 of insert soap.

In accordance with one form of the invention the insert soap may be of aharder and/or drier soap material than that constituting the base cake.Also the grain in the insert strip 88 is preferably in a planeperpendicular to the path 11 of movement of the plunger member 19 andthe piston member II In addition the springs I96 and IE2 are so selectedand arranged that the approximately fiush relationship is maintainedbetween the bottom faces of piston I04 and plungers H9 during this firststep so that there will be no disturbance of the grain in the insertsoap being compressed.

It will also be noted that the bottom of cavity 89 and/or the apertures89 are closed by slide 9i during such compression of the insert soap butit is to be understood that the provision of such a slide is optionalbecause with insignia of small area and7or insert soap of suiiicienthardness or dryness the extrusion through apertures 89 duringcompression will be negligible and will not disturb the re-arrangementof the grain for the insert or at most will only disturb the grain inthe lower part of the insert.

The movement of plates I03 and IE9 toward block 83 continues untiladjustable stops II'I thereon abut against block 83 and adjustment ofsaid stops III permits control of the distance which piston member IIenters into the cavity 86. During said first step of the cycle, thethrust of springs I06 and H2 is exerted against springs 99 only throughthe soap material in cavity 85. The predominance of springs 99 preventsany appreciable movement of the cover member 69 and the differencebetween the resistance of springs 99 and the effort of springs I99 andIE2 determines the pressure exerted on the insert soap in cavity 06,which pressure is sufficient to orient the grain in said insert soap.

Continued movement of frame member I2 after stops II! on plate I03 abutagainst block 83 accomplishes th second step of my improved method andapparatus, as shown in Fig. 12. Such movement of frame member I2 aftercompression of the insert soap in cavity 86 and abutment of stops II!with block 83 further increases the compression of springs I06 and H2whose efforts are now exerted directly against the block 83 and springs99,.are now compressed. As a result cover member 89 is moved toward themold member and the soap cake engaging surface 85 of projection 84 ismoved against the display surface of the soap cake 29 within the frame55 of the mold member and dowels 83' on block 83 are moved intocorresponding recesses in said frame 50. At the same time, and as thethird step of the cycle the plunger member 10 and the piston member I!are both moved toward the soap cake but the lower faces of piston I04and of plungers I I are maintained in substantially flush relationshipon account of the relative characteristics of the springs I 96 and H2,see particularly Fig. 13. Since plate I09 has not moved relatively toplate I03, the slide 9I, if provided, is still in closed position.

During the fourth step of the cycle, the distinctive inserts areprojected or injected into the soap cake 29, see Fig. 14. The actuatingmeans for said insert forming and injecting station moves the frame head"I2 farther toward the mold member and sprin 2* is compressed still moreto exert a thrust on plate I09 and move the same toward block 83 ofcover member 69. Such relative movement of plate I09 moves rises I I6 ofcam members II out of the slots 92 in slide 9| and springs 95 thus actto move one end of slide 9I against one of the dowels 83' on block 83 inwhich position the opening 9'! in said slide EI is opposite the ends ofplungers H0 and in registry with the bottom of cavity 86, see Fig. 10.

Further movement of plate I99 toward block 83 projects plungers H0through piston I04 and presses distinctive inserts 34 out of thecompressed insert soap in cavit 86 and into the soap cake 29. Since theapertures 89 in projection 84 are formed by molding around the cores orperforating plungers GI in the manner described with respect to Figs. 3and 5, such injection or insertion into the apertures 65 in soap cake 29will be accompanied by a reforming or reshaping of said apertures 65 bythe distinctive inserts 34' which themselves out a portion or shaving 29from the walls of apertures 95 in cake 29, as shown in Figs. 6, 14 and19. The movement of plate I09 and plungers I I0 with respect to block 89and projection 99 is limited by engagement of abutments I09 with the topof block 83. Said abutments I09 may be adjustable and are arranged sothat the ends of plungers III) are precisely flush with the cakeengaging surface of the cover member 69 at the completion of the fourthstep of the cycle. if such soap cake engaging surface 85 is concave, asshown, the ends of plungers III] are also concave to form therewith asmoothly curved surface.

The stroke of plungers I I0 is preferably so selected or adjusted as toproject into the soap cake is a distinctive soap insert 34 equal inlength to one half the thickness of the soap cake 29. Since theapertures 65 extend more than half Way into the cake 29, the soapmaterial 29' which is scraped or shaved from the walls of apertures 05by the inserts 34' will fill in the extra depth of said apertures 95,see Fig. 14. The stroke of the perforating plungers 6i may be increasedor decreased depending upon the space required by the soap materialremoved by the reshaping of apertures 65 by the inserts 34'.

An important advantage of injecting the distinctive inserts 34 in themanner just described is that the outer ends of said inserts 34' may beformed to conform more or less to the display surface of the soap cake29 without the necessity of a cut-off operation upon the inserts whichleaves an objectionable shiny area on said display surface adjacent theinserts 34. Another advantage of injecting the inserts 34 in the mannerdescribed is that the ends of plungers IIO may be formed with acurvature different and/or reverse from the curvature of the displaysurface of the cake 2'9, and abutments I09 may be adjusted so that theends of plungers H0 at the end of their stroke extend slightly into thecake 29 to give a recessed effect. Alternatively, the ends of plungersH0 may be more sharply concave than the surface of cake 29, see Fig. 22,and abutments I09 may be adjusted so that only the edges of such concaveends of plungers IIO are flush with the display surface of cake 29 togive an embossed effect.

As previously suggested, the immediate injection of the inserts 34'after their formation and the reshaping of the apertures by suchrecently formed inserts renders the contacting surfaces of the cake andinserts tackier and/or more adhesive so that the fixation of the insertswithin the cake is improved. This advantage is obtained whether theapertures 65 are pre-formed in the cake 29 or whether the inserts 34'are of a harder and drier soap material and themselves effect thepenetration of the soap cake.

Finally, the soap cake 29 with the insert 34' therein is subjected to acompression which finishes the surfaces of the cake, Such finishingoperation is accomplished by further movement of the frame head 12 tobring the block 83 of cover member 69 against the face of hollow frame50of the mold member, see Fig. 15. During such finishing oompressiontheends of plungers Hi3 and the cake engaging surface 85 of the covermember are maintained in the same relative positions as at the end ofthe fourth step of the cycle or as maintained by the abutments H39.

Upon the return stroke of the frame head 72 the compression on springs99, I86 and H2 is relieved and the lower portion of frame head 12' abutsagainst adjusting nut H4 and nut members 38 respectively to return theplunger member 10 including plate I09 and plungers H and the pistonmember including plate IE3 and piston I04 to their uppermost positionsas shown in Fig. '7. At the same time springs 99 raise the cover member69 including block 83, projection 84 and actuating rods 98 until nuts98' thereon abut against the support member 81. Such return of framehead 12 to its upper position also places springs IU I under compressionwhich act upon nuts I02 to assist in raising rods 88 and to urge nuts 98against support member 61.

After such return of the parts of the insert forming and injectingstation to their uppermost or retracted positions, the strip 88 ofinsert soap is advanced manually or by any suitable mechanism to feed anadditional supply of insert soap along the guideway 81 into the cavity86 in block 83. As previously explained, the indexing means istimed tomove the carrier and mold members thereon. when the parts of all thestations are spaced from the carrier and the cycle may be repeated inthe manner just described.

Inasmuch as the insert soap materialis subjeoted to pressure in thecavity 85 to orient and/ or rearrange the grain of such soap material sothat such grain will be substantially parallel to the display surfaceafter insertion into the soap cake, the grain in the strip 88 of insertsoap being fed into the compression chamber may extend in any direction.However, if the insert soap material is fed in strips or blocks having adepth equal to that of the insert 34 and if the soap grain in suchstrips or blocks is already in a predetermined. plane, the constructionand operation of the insert forming and injecting station may besimplified and improved in the manner next to be described.

In general such. improvement of the insert forming and injecting stationcomprises the provision of a deeper guideway for feeding a soap stripequal in thickness to the depth of the insorts. and the substitution ofa cutter or cutters having the contour of the desired insignia in placeof the piston lot of the piston member ii of the previously describedinsert forming and injecting station.

According to this other embodiment of the invention, the insert formingand injecting station comprises a cover member 65, one or more outtersI38, a plunger member iii, and an actuating means to operate saidmembers. Said cover member 59 includes a block 83 carrying a projection84 with a concave cake engaging surface 85 for engaging the displaysurface of a soap cake 29 within a mold member which is opposite thestation and which comprises a hollow frame 50 and a movable bottommember 55. Said block 83,.is provided with a guideway E39 for a stripI'M) .of insert soap material having its grain in a predetermined planewhich is parallel to the bottom of said guideway I39 or substantially 14parallel to the display surface of cake 29 in the mold member. Saidguideway it is preferably located with its lower surface even with thetop of projection es and is of a depth and width sufficient to receive astrip Hit of distinctive or insert soap material having a depth orthickness equal to the desired depth of the distinctive inserts andhaving a width greater than the lateral extent of the insignia. Saidblock 83 is also provided with one or more openings it! extending fromthe top thereof to said guideway E39 and projection is provided withapertures 89 corresponding to the shape of the insignia.

actuating means for the cover member comprises a pair of actuating rodses attached to block al and extending upwardly through frame head E2 andsupport member 5?. Coil springs 99 encircle rods 98 between nuts [Ellithereon and support member 62. Nut members 93' on rods Q5 abut the lowersurface of support member El. Coil springs Elli encircle rods 98 withinframe head '32 and nuts '32 on rods 98 engage the upper ends of springsEdi.

The cutter member comprises a plate it? and one or more thin walledcutters 538 formed to the sh-pe of the insignia and extending downwardlyfrom plate I03. The actuating means for such cutter member comprises apair of actuating rods H5 fastened to diagonally opposite corners ofplate i833 and extending upwardly through said frame head 12. A pair ofcoil springs Hi3 encircle said rods 995 within the frame head l2, pairof nuts it! threaded to rods RG5 adjust the compression on springs M6,and nut members 58 on rods I55 may abut the lower end of frame head iii.

The plunger member it comprises a plate I69 and one or more plungers H3which have the same shape and contour as the desired insignia and whichfit into the cutters I38 and into the apertures 3Q in projection 3d ofthe cover member. Said plungers l is extend downwardly from plate 589which is provided near each corner with holes through which extend thepairs of actuating rods 93 and 35. An actuating rod Iii is attached atits lower end to the center of plate i653 and extends upwardly throughthe frame head 72. A coil spring H2 encircles said rod HI between a nutH3 threaded thereon and the upper portion of frame head 12. An adjustingnut lid is also threaded onto rod HI and is adapted to abut against thelower end of frame head 72. A pair of abutments 1539 are adjustablymounted or threaded-into plate N39.

The frame head 72 of the preferred insert forming and injection stationis operated as described previously and as shown in Fig. 21 and at thebeginning of the cycle the actuating means spaces the plates m3 and itsfrom the block 83 as shown in Fig. '7. In such position of plate N3 thelower endsof cutters H38 are above the guideway I39 so that the insertsoap strip i' lfi can be fed therealong either manually or in somemechanical manner not shown. At the same time the bottom ends ofplungers i it] are above guideway it?! and are preferably flush with thebeveled ends E38 of cutters 138, see Fig. 22.

The first step of this preferred method or insert forming cycle of themachine is illustrated in Figs. 17 and 18 and takes place during thefirst part of the downward movement of frame head E2 of the actuatingmeans. During such movement of frame head 12 the compression on springsit is increased to exert a thrust on actuating rods W5 and move plateI03 toward block 83 and the adjustable stops II'I into engagementtherewith. Such movement of plate I03 moves cutters I38 through thestrip I40 of insert soap to cut the distinctive soap inserts therefromand the beveled lower edges I38 of said cutters I 38 fit into or againstthe beveled upper edges 89 of the apertures 89 in projection 8d. Thespring I :2 may be arranged so that plate I99 and plungers H are notmoved during said first step of the cycle or are at most only moved tobring the bottom ends of plungers I I0 against the upper surface ofstrip I40. Also during said first step of the cycle the springs 99oppose and prevent any appreciable movement of block 83.

Continued movement of frame member I2 after stops I I! on plate I03 abutagainst block 83 accomplishes the second step of the preferred methodand apparatus as shown in Figs. 19 and 20. Further movement of framemember I2 places spring H2 under sufiicient compression to move plateI09 toward plate I03 and relieves the compression on springs EOI so thatblock 83 and projection 84 are simultaneously moved toward the moldmember, and cake engaging surface 85 on projection 84 abuts against thecake 29 in the mold members, and dowels 83' move into correspondingrecesses 50' in frame 50. As the downward movement of frame head 12continues the plate I09 is moved downwardly and the distinctive soapinserts 34 are injected into the soap cake 29 and/or into apertures 65previously provided therein. As before such injection of the inserts 34'reshapes or reforms the apertures 65. If the soap material for inserts34 is sufiiciently harder than the material of soap cake 29, the inserts34' may be injected directly into the soap cake 29 without any previousprovision of apertures therein.

Finally the abutments I09 on plate I09 engage the top of block 83 andthe lower faces of plungers I I0 are located in flush, recessed orprotruding relationship with respect to the cake engaging surface 85 onprojection 84. Again the whole insert forming and injecting station maybe pressed to exert a final finishing operation upon the composite soapcake 29 and distinctive insert 34'.

During the return of the frame head I2 to its uppermost position, theplates I03 and I09 are displaced from block 83 and returned to theiroriginal positions. The retraction of cutter or cutters I 38 from thestrip I 40 of insert soap will tend to carry the said strip I40 alongbut the upper wall of the guideway I39 acts as a stripper to preventthis. Thus it will be understood that the opening or openings MI inblock 83 need not correspond at all to the contour of the cutter orcutters I38 as long as the insert soap in strip I40 is cleanly strippedfrom the cutters I38.

After the insert injection has been accomplished and the carrierrotated, the rise 49 of cam member 41 will radially move the stem 55 andbottom members of the mold member to eject the finished composite soapcake therefrom.

While various forms of the invention have been shown herein, it is to beunderstood that invention may be accomplished in still other forms orarrangements, for instance it is clear that the actuating means ormechanism for the various stations can be provided in a variety of Ways.Consequently, the present disclosure is to be construed only in anillustrative sense and the scope of the invention is defined in theclaims which follow.

Having now particularly described my inven- 16 tion what I desire tosecure by Letters Patent oi the United States and what I claim is:

1. The method of making a soap cake having a distinctive insignia, whichcomprises forming from dry soap material a hard distinctive inserthaving the shape of the desired insignia, providing in said soap cake arecess smaller than the display surface of said insignia, and pressingsaid hard insert into the recess in said soap cake of softer soapmaterial and displacing the soft soap of said cake by said hard soapinsert.

2. The method of making a soap cake having a distinctive insignia, whichcomprises pressing into a recess provided in a soap cake a distinctiveinsert having a display surface larger than said recess and of soapmaterial that is relatively drier than the soap of said soap cake, andshaping said recess by introduction of said harder insert so that saidinsert fits precisely into said soap cake.

3. The method of making a soap cake having a distinctive insignia, whichcomprises forming from relatively drier soap material a distinctiveinsert having the shape of the desired insignia, pressing said insertimmediately after its formation into a recess in the softer soap cake,which recess is smaller than the display surface of said insignia, andshaping said recess by introduction of said insert of drier soapmaterial so that said insert and soap cake are precisely complementaryand well bonded to each other.

4. The'method of making a soap cake having a distinctive insignia, whichcomprises providing in a soap cake a, recess having the shape of butsmaller than the display surface of said insignia, softening the soapmaterial forming the walls of said recess, pressing into said recess adistinctive insert of relatively dry soap material and having the sizeand shape of said insignia and larger than said recess, and shaping saidrecess by introduction of said insert of drier soap material whichinsert itself cuts away softened portions of the soap cake precisely tothe size and shape of said insert.

5. The method of making a soap cake having a distinctive insigniaextending partially therethrough, which comprises providing in a soapcake a recess of greater depth than the insignia but less than thethickness of said cake, forming from a relatively dry soap material adistinctive insert having the shape of the desired insignia and largerin area than said recess and shorter than the depth of said recess, andpressing said drier soap insert into said soap cake to reshape therecess therein by means of said insert which displaces portions of thesoap cake and moves them to the space between the bottom of said recessand the end of said insert.

6. The method of making a soap cake having a distinctive insigniaextending only partially therethrough, which comprises forming from drysoap material a hard distinctive insert having the shape and depth ofthe desired insignia, and pressing said hard insert a distancecorresponding to the depth thereof into a, recess in a soap cake ofsofter soap material, which recess is smaller than the display surfaceof said insignia, and displacing the soiter soap of said cake by saidhard distinctive soap insert.

'7. The method of making a soap cake having a distinctive insignia,which comprises providing in a soap cake a recess smaller than thedisplay area of the insignia, extruding from a soap material that isdrier than the soap of said cake an insert having the shape of thedesired insignia,

and immediately introducing the extruded insert of drier soap into thesmaller recess in said soap cake and thereby shaping said recess tocorrespond precisely to the form of said insert.

8. The method of making a soap cake having a distinctive insignia, whichcomprises providing in a soap cake a recess having the configuration ofbut smaller than the display area of said insignia, molding a soapinsert of relatively dry soap material in a die formed by the core forrecessing said soap cake, and pressing the drier soap insert into saidrecess and thereby reshaping said soap cake.

9. The method of making a soap cake having a distinctive insignia, whichcomprises providing within the soap cake an aperture corresponding tobut smaller than the display area of the insignia desired, and extrudinga soap insert of relatively dry soap material for insertion into saidaperture through a die molded around the core used 130 form the aperturein said soap cake.

10. The method of making a soap cake having a display surface includinga distinctive insignia,

which comprises forming an insert having the shape of the desiredinsignia, from distinctive and relatively dry soap material having agrain substantially parallel to the display end surface of saidinsignia, providing in the soap cake a recess of smaller size than saidinsert, and pressing said drier soap insert in a direction perpendicularto the grain thereof into the recess in said soap cake and therebyshaping said recess to correspond precisely to the shape of said insert.

11. The method of making a soap cake having a display surface includinga distinctive insignia, which comprises compressing. a soap materialwhich is distinctive from and relatively drier than the material of saidsoap cake and thereby arranging the grain in such distinctive soapmaterial in predetermined direction, removing from said distinctive soapmaterial in a direction perpendicular to the grain thereof an inserthaving the shape of the desired insignia providing in the soap cake arecess smaller than the display area of said insert, and pressing saiddrier soap insert in a direction perpendicular to the grain thereof 18into the recess in said soap cake and thereby shaping said recess tocorrespond precisely to the shape of said insert.

12. The method of making a soap cake having a distinctive insignia,which comprises compressing a soap material which is drier than anddistinctive from said soap cake and thereby arranging the grain in suchdistinctive soap material in a predetermined direction, punching fromsaid distinctive and drier soap material in a direction perpendicular tothe grain thereof an insert having the shape of the desired insignia,providing in said soap cake a recess smaller than the display surface ofsaid insignia, and pressing said insert in a direction perpendicular tothe grain thereof into said recess in the soap cake and therebyreshaping the recess in said soap cake to correspond precisely to theform of said insert.

13. The method of making a soap cake having a distinctive insignia,which comprises cutting an insert having the shape of the desiredinsignia from a, comparatively dry soap material having a predeterminedgrain by moving a cutter in a direction perpendicular to the plane ofsaid grain, providing in said soap cake a recess smaller than thedisplay surface of said insignia, and pressing said insert of drier soapmaterial from the cutter in a direction also perpendicular to the grainof said insert into said recess in the soap cake of softer soap materialand thereby reshaping the recess in said soap cake to correspondprecisely to the shape of said insert.

LESLIE A. BLOCK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 683,181 Mereness Sept. 24, 19011,876,826 Armstrong et a1. Sept. 13, 1932 2,292,359 Block Aug. 11, 19421,910,904 Moore May 23, 1933 1,791,359 Henrikson Feb. 3, 1931 1,267,949Williams May 28, 1918

